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redletterdave writes "The Black Death, a strain of bubonic plague that destroyed nearly a third of Europe's entire population between 1347 and 1369, has been found in Oregon. Health officials in Portland have confirmed that a man contracted the plague after getting bitten by a cat. The unidentified man, who is currently in his 50s, had tried to pry a dead mouse from a stray cat's mouth on June 2 when the cat attacked him. Days later, fever and sickness drove the man to check himself into Oregon's St. Charles Medical Center, where he is currently in 'critical condition.'"

While an exciting headline, certain to raise the blood pressure of the angst brigade, this isn't terribly newsworthy. Bubonic plague has been found in animals (mostly prairie dogs in Colorado) for decades and apparently is the sixth case of plague in Oregon since 1995. It's easy to treat with antibiotics. The hardest part is actually thinking that Yersinia pestis is the causative organism.

Bubonic plague has been endemic (sustaining itself permanently, in this case in the animal population) in the western part of the US for years, although it is news to public health officials when a human contracts it. There was a case two years ago, also in Oregon.

The reason it doesn't sweep the nation the way it swept Europe is advances in hygiene, public health and medical treatment. Rats and fleas in the house aren't unheard of these days, but they're no longer universal. If people are getting bit by fleas they'll call the exterminator or the board of health; they won't just accept it as a fact of life. If they contract plague they'll go to the doctor who will cure it relatively easily.

Yes, he contracted septicaemic plague, the blood-borne form of Yersinia pestis. That doesn't mean he contracted "the Black Death". The Black Death was almost certainly caused by a variant of Y. pestis which is no longer around (microorganisms tend to change a bit over the course of a few centuries). It's also the name of a specific pandemic of plague, and while there were other smaller outbreaks in the following centuries, they weren't generally referred to by that name. One human case of a disease that is now treatable with antibiotics and easy to contain does not make for a pandemic.

Exactly this. In the Southwestern US there is a case of plague every couple of years. Not a big deal unless it isn't diagnosed and treated rapidly. It probably shows up in other areas of the world as well.

Bacteria that spread from human to human can evolve antibiotic resistance relatively quickly. Bacteria that spread primarily from animal to animal, especially if those animals are wild, are much less likely to evolve resistance. I don't think we are going to start giving antibiotics to prairie dogs.

The summary specifies it was a stray cat. Who the hell tries to pry open the mouth of a stray cat? You have no idea what kinds of bacteria, viruses, or other nasty infectious things are living in a stray cat's mouth.

How insightful of you. I bet you knew that right out of your ass: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_condoms [wikipedia.org] (yes, five hundred years IS evolutionarily significant, although perhaps not enough so for us to all grow teeth on our penises)

There are 1-2 cases of bubonic plague in the US every year. "Yersenia pestis" is part of the normal body flora of several animals, especially underneath the nails of the armadillo. Now when we see cipro resistant plague, then you can panic.

Even though there are about seven cases of the Black Plague in the U.S. each year, most cases have been in the West and the Southweset, the bacterium is considerably less fatal than it once was. According to the CDC, 1 in 7 cases are fatal, but the disease can now be treated with antibiotics.

Well, Charlie was a neighborhood cat, who was well known to everyone on that street, and the sick man was in the habit of inviting Charlie in for dinner, but didn't care for the appetizer Charlie brought. The fever made Charlie atypically cranky, and Charlie chomped down...
Three other folks from another household in that neighborhood are also receiving treatment, but don't have the blood-borne version, and they're doing OK. (I have neighborhood sources.)
OBTW, no one has mentioned, this is in Prineville, in the High Desert of Crook County, Oregon, 2.5 hrs' drive ESE of Portland, where Facebook's data center is located and other data centers are in development.

I am actually a better programmer after smoking a _small_ amount. My right-brained creative problem solving abilities are greatly increased, at the expense of some of my left-brained activities (such as doing math in my head). This is particularly important for me, a heavily left-brained thinker. Whenever I get stuck on a problem, I go have a "smoke break," and suddenly I have all kinds of ideas flowing through my head (some of which are even good). Results will vary depending on the person though.

Oh if you get a chance you really must go, and not just for the most delicious pot. you should really bring a camera and be ready to stop almost constantly because the vistas you will see are truly some of the most breathtaking i have ever seen, with huge valley scenes with incredible peaks and cliffs and flowing water everywhere, it is truly a wondrous view of nature that one simply must see with your own eyes. I swear you can simply pull on the side of the road in a large chunk of the Ozarks and the view is like standing on this great peak, with all this beautiful unspoiled wonder spread out before you, quite inspiring.

But I can assure you that its true that in places where there is a lot of fertile land and pot being grown you'll find as many flavors and textures as you do alcohol, everything from lightly mellow to harsh, from sweet to skunky, from tasty to almost medicinal in flavor. If I were to describe the typical pot from the Ozarks it would be peaty with a slight sweet overtone, with a very forest scent, kinda like a mix of pine and juniper, quite lovely. If one were to go to the swampier south AR the pot is more musky, nice tasting but with a definite skunk scent, while the northeast area close to Memphis favors pot that has a much sweeter taste and aroma, almost candy like.

In a way pot is a LOT like wine in that the kind of soil the plant is grown in and the conditions of the area does seem to cause differences in taste and texture not to mention buzz. I have a feeling most of the pot you've had has been either imported or been grown by mega-growers, their weed tends to be extra strong but not very much in the way of variety, kinda like the rotgut of old. And I can't believe that I'm sitting here actually judging flavors of various cultivars, but as a musician I've got to sample quite a few from different areas and there are some overall themes when it comes to pot grown in certain areas. Oh and FYI the worst pot I ever smoked was East Texas, it'll knock you on your ass but tastes like cheap cigarettes smell, a real ditchweed harsh nasty flavoring.